"I just don't know what to do with him, Esme. I'm at my wits end right now." Carlisle laid stretched out on the couch with his mate curled up in his arms as she flipped through the channels on the television before settling on an old black and white movie.
"You said that Jasper acknowledged his error. You're just going to have to trust that he has learned his lesson."
"I want to and that usually isn't a problem, but in this one instance he just keeps proving exceedingly stubborn. By the time he is willing to listen to reason, he has already crossed the line. What if I'm not there to stop him when it happens again?"
Esme rolled over until she was lying on top of her mate and stared lovingly into his eyes to catch a glimpse of his tormented soul. "You can't allow yourself to think that way, my love. It's not a case of 'when' it happens but 'if' it happens again. You have to think positively or you'll set Jasper up to fail. He's a smart young man. He'll do the right thing, he has just needed a bit more … encouragement this time than he usually does."
He made a move to protest but his words were cut off before they could fully form by his wife's sweet lips pressing against his. For the length of their kiss, Carlisle was granted a reprieve from his troubling thoughts. For just a moment, the world around him ceased to exist because Esme was his world.
Breaking the kiss and pulling slightly back, his wife smiled at Carlisle's dazed expression.
"Damn, you wily woman and your magic. My father would have seen you hanged."
Esme giggled as she stroked her mate's thick pale hair. "I dare say that he would have done the same to you."
With a soft sigh, Carlisle shook his head. "No. He would have had me drawn and quartered or burnt at the stake. That was the general treatment of unnatural beasts."
Esme rolled her eyes. "Oh yes, how beastly you are, Doctor Carlisle Cullen."
"You don't find me dangerous, woman?"
Giving a short laugh, his mate smiled sweetly. "You are as harmless as a newborn kitten."
"Ah, but kittens are born with sharp claws." With a roguish spark in his amber eyes, Carlisle grabbed a hold of his mate and flipped her around until he had her pinned beneath him. He nipped at the side of her neck before trailing kisses along her pale shoulder while a deep rumbling purr reverberated in his chest.
Esme closed her eyes as she lost herself in her husband's attention only to suddenly become aware of a strange sensation.
"Carlisle, are you... vibrating?"
Reluctantly removing his lips from her flawless silky skin he paused for a moment then closed his eyes as he groaned in frustration. "No. Not now."
Shoving his hand into the pocket of his slacks, the doctor withdrew his cell phone.
"Let it go to voice mail," his mate suggested in a lusty tone.
The doctor whined, sounding more like his children than their leader, as he checked the number. "I can't. It's the hospital."
"Being a doctor's wife is so very glamorous," Esme sighed as her husband slid off of her to sit down at her feet.
Putting her feet in his lap, his mate went back to channel surfing until a light touch to the sole of her foot caused her to withdraw it with a loud squeal.
"Ssh, woman. Control yourself. I'm on the phone."
Still giggling, Esme kicked Carlisle in the side and was rewarded by the sound of his breath rushing out in a huff.
"Oh just you wait until I'm done with this phone call, young lady. You will pay dearly for that." He rubbed his side as he glared at his mate.
"Promises. Promises."
He was reaching for her flailing foot when a voice came on the line. Instantly, Carlisle morphed into Doctor Cullen, the incessant professional.
"Calm down, Gloria. What's going on?" His features rapidly darkened. "No, don't do anything. I understand, but I don't want you... Listen to me. I want you to call Stan. Get him there to handle things and tell him that I'm on my way. I want you to ... Gloria, you shouldn't even... No, I don't want... Gloria!" His voice, while still soft, was suddenly stern and commanding. "You listen to me, young lady. Good. Take yourself to the lounge. I will check on you just as soon ... I don't care. I am your supervisor and you will do... Gloria. Let Stan handle it until I arrive. I'll call Charlie Swan from the car and have him meet me there. Under no circumstance are you to go back to that room. Have I made myself clear? Good. I will be there as soon as I can. I'm leaving my house right now. Alright, I'll see you soon and I expect... Oh for the love... You're worse than my son, do you know that? Fine, but if I find you in that... Gloria!"
He looked at his wife as he quickly pocketed his phone and finished putting his shoes back on. "Why is it that the best people are also the worse when it comes to taking direction?"
"Trouble?"
He nodded. "I don't want to say anything right now, but I'll call you with the details." Leaning over he gently kissed his wife before grabbing his car keys off the table and rushing out the door.
Watching him go, Esme sighed softly. All she could hope for was that everything would work out. She knew that Jasper would regain his self-control given enough time. Now she had to hope that they had the luxury of time for that to effectively occur.
Settling back down to watch her movie she let her mind wander to places she wouldn't when she was in Carlisle's presence. What would they do in a worst case scenario? Other clans didn't have to worry so much about covering their tracks. Naturally they had to be weary of humans, but most moved on before their activities could become problematic. Her family's lifestyle kept them in closer proximity to humans so their actions were always under scrutiny, forcing them to be more careful.
Running her hands through her hair, Esme sunk into the throw pillow that cradled her head. Oh, Jasper. If something would go wrong what could we do? What would you do?
Obviously, the first step would be to destroy any and all evidence of foul play. Modern forensics made that a bit more difficult than in days long gone by, but there were still methods. Of course they would have to move, but it would have to be done in such a way that their departure wouldn't seem suspicious. A disappearance or murder followed by an entire family vanishing…yep, not a thing odd in that. College for Emmett and Rosalie. Private prep schools for Edward and Alice. Military school for Jasper to whip his troubled behind back into shape. A new job opportunity for Carlisle that he simply can't afford to pass up. Maybe a move out of the country this time for a real change of scenery. I could go back to school and study architecture in Paris. We haven't been there for quite some time.
Esme rubbed her temples as the ideas continued to ebb and flow. The matriarch felt a sudden anger rise within her; anger directed towards herself.
What are you doing? You're acting like this is Providence. Did you, or did you not just tell Carlisle that he had to stay positive? Jasper hasn't done anything. There is no reason to believe that he will. He is a good boy; an intelligent young man. He knows what is at risk here. You have to put your faith in him to make the right decisions.
"Mama, where's Daddy? I need to talk to him right now." Alice's voice shocked Esme back to reality.
"He'll be back in a little while, sweetheart. He had an emergency call from the hospital, but it shouldn't take him long to clear things up over there. Can it wait?"
Alice shook her head vehemently. "No, it can't. I need him now. He needs to come back home. This is an emergency."
"What's wrong, Alice?" Esme sat up, giving her daughter her full attention.
"It's Jazzy."
Esme's eyes widened. "What about Jazz?"
"He's gone." Alice wrung her hands and began to pace as the desire to do something, anything, became too great. "I was clearing some space in the closet and when I turned back around he was just gone."
Esme felt as if her heart had risen into her throat. "Maybe he just went for a hunt. That is something your father told him to do."
Alice nodded. "That's what I'm afraid of."
There was no need for her daughter to elaborate on exactly what she feared her mate was out hunting. Esme took Alice's hand and pulled her down onto the couch next to her. Wrapping her little girl in a firm hug, Esme tried her best to comfort Alice. "We don't know that anything is wrong. His thirst may have just gotten the better of him and he went out after some deer. The stress that he has been under is putting a strain on his reserves." She ran her fingers through her baby's short dark hair. "You can't see what he is up to?"
Venom tears rolled down Alice's cheeks as she once again shook her head. "He's not thinking coherently. It might not be anything, but it feels like he is intentionally not focusing to keep me in the dark. Jazz has never blocked me before. He's never even tried to. Why would he do that if he wasn't…."
"Sh. Don't even think that, Alice. There is a reason that he has never blocked you before. It's simply not in him to try to be deceitful. I'm sure he doesn't realize that he has blocked you. He must just be confused for some reason and once he settles down, you'll be able to see…."
"No," a quiet voice rang out from the stairwell.
Both Esme and Alice lifted their heads to find Edward standing against the banister with his hands shoved deeply in his pockets as he hung his head low in concentration. "I can't hear him clearly either. He has a loop of gibberish going on so I can't tell what he is thinking or seeing for that matter. Jasper doesn't want us to know what he is doing and I can't even get a clear enough reading on him to know where he is."
Edward lifted his head and directed his gaze towards his mother. "Dad needs to know. I don't know if Jasper is heading towards the hospital or not, but Dad should be prepared in case he does show up there."
"Why would he go there in the first place?" Apprehension had crept into Esme's tone with the addition of Edward's observations.
"It's the girl's father." Edward shook his head as he tried to hang onto the thread of Carlisle's thoughts before his father was completely out of range. "He showed up at the hospital and has caused some sort of a scene. Dad is furious and worried. It seems that one of the nurses may have been hurt when she tried to stop this guy and that is just making Dad angrier."
"Well now, facing off with an angry Pops is not going to be in that human's best interest. How dumb can you be? I wouldn't want to be in his shoes, but I'm willing to put cold hard cash down on Pops. Anybody wanna a piece of the action? Place your bets."
Esme glanced over her shoulder to see Emmett and Rosalie standing just inside the archway into the kitchen. Rose had been working on Edward's car so she and Emmett would have known if Jasper had taken his bike or one of the cars. Esme released her breath at that thought. At least he's on foot. That should make it a little easier to track him down.
The matriarch sighed heavily before she sprang into action.
"Rosalie, would you and Em please see if you can figure out which way Jasper went? Edward, since you are the only one who is faster than Jazz, I would appreciate it if you would go with Rose and Emmett. Hopefully he hasn't made it too far yet." She glanced at her worried little girl before continuing. "I have the feeling that once you find him, he is not going to want to come back. Em, do whatever you have to do to bring him home safe."
"You've got it, Momma. We'll bring him back home if I have to tie him up and throw him over my shoulder like a pig in a sack."
Edward pinched the bridge of his nose. "That's a lovely image, Emmett. You could have foregone the apple in the mouth though."
Emmett smirked as he took Rose's hand and headed towards the door.
Alice spoke up quickly. "I want to go, too. He would be more willing to come to me than anyone else."
"Baby, I need you to stay here with me so I know what's going on. I need you to keep track of the others so we can relay information along to your father."
"But, Momma, Jazzy needs me to find him."
Taking her daughter's hands in her own, Esme spoke in a firm calm voice. "Alice, Jazz needs you to stay here where you'll be the most help in resolving this episode quickly. Your father and I need to know everything that is going on and you're the only one who can effectively keep us in the loop. Please do this for me…and for Jazz."
Releasing her unneeded breath, Alice nodded.
"Alright! Come on, Eddie. Let's go out and find ourselves a deserting rebel solider." Rosalie slapped her mate's shoulder hard causing him to grimace as she growled out his name. "Ow! What did I say?"
"Emmett!" Alice looked at her brother with an expression of shock and disgust.
"I was just joking, Ali Girl. You know, trying to lighten the mood is all."
"Well, don't joke like that. It would hurt Jazzy's feelings to hear you say that sort of thing."
Esme patted Alice's knee as she addressed her son. "Em, behave yourself or you'll answer to me. Now see what you can do. Start out in the direction of the hospital and try to pick up his trail. I'm certain your father will join you as soon as he possibly can."
"Yes, Momma. Come on, Babe. Eddie. Let the Cullen Clan Rescue commence." With that the three siblings were out of the door in a flash set on bringing their wayward brother home.
As she watched them disappear, Esme sighed then grabbed her phone and punched in Carlisle's number. When his phone went straight to voice mail she recalled him saying something about having to call the chief of police once he was on his way to the hospital.
"Carlisle, we have what might be an emergency situation. Jasper has gone missing. Edward, Rose and Emmett are out tracking him, but we think that he might be heading your way. Call me as soon as you can. Be careful and make sure that both of you stay safe. Love you and hope to see you and my little boy soon."
Ending the call Esme turned to find her daughter once again in silent tears. "Oh, Ali. It's going to be okay."
"You can't know that. I don't even know that."
"I do know, because with Rose and the boys out looking for Jazz it's only a matter of time before they find him. If for some reason they can't catch up to him, your father will get to him before he can do anything rash. No one is going to let anything happen to Jasper. They'll bring him back home safe and sound."
Opening her arms and taking Alice into her loving embrace, Esme rocked the girl gently as she rested her cheek on top of her daughter's head. "It's going to be okay, baby. You'll see. Everything is going to be alright." If I can only convince myself of that….
Jasper drew deep breaths of the cold night air out of nothing more than habit. With his venom flowing like adrenaline through his body, the solider felt as though he was still alive.
He was a man on a mission; a man possessed. Hearing the fragmented call to his father was all it took to stoke the fires of revenge. He had to protect little Amanda and now he was also fueled by the additional need to deal this cretin a dose of justice for harming his father's friend and Jasper's own most trusted ally at the hospital, Nurse Gloria.
How dare he lay a finger on that woman? Is there no end to how low this scum will stoop? I will learn him to never touch a woman like that again, even if I have to break his hands to do it. Your worst nightmare is about to come true, you worthless lowlife.
As Jasper raced through the woods a familiar sound caressed his sensitive ears. His father's car was barreling down the road in his direction.
Thinking quickly, the youth took to the trees well out of his father's field of vision. Jasper did not need any confirmation from his beloved or her visions as to just how Carlisle would react to his disobedience. The moment that he stepped out of his bedroom window, he knew that he had sealed his fate, but not even the constant throbbing pain in his backside could deter him from his path.
It is easier to ask for forgiveness than it is to ask for permission. He snorted as he clung to a limb and watched the sleek black car speed by below. As if Carlisle would have given him the go ahead to put this contemptible swine out of his and everyone else's misery.
This wasn't even bloodlust. Jasper had no intention of feeding from the man. He would give the sadistic fiend much more than he deserved; a swift clean death. Hayford deserved to suffer long for his crimes against his child and spouse and Jasper would like nothing better than to oblige him, but there wouldn't be time for that and his father would most certainly frown on 'messy.'
A quick snap of the neck and a conveniently placed ladder was all he needed to make it look like an accident. No chance of exposure for his family. No fear of retribution from the law; be it human or vampire. Hayford would be just another frail human being who had sadly succumb to an unfortunate and very natural appearing end.
As the sound of Carlisle's car faded, Jasper smiled maliciously. If he was quick about it and was cautious enough, he even stood a chance of not having his father find out. Perhaps he could eliminate the brute, thereby doing the world a favor, and still manage to keep his hide intact.
He crouched on the broad limb a little longer as his mind raced. With Carlisle heading towards his workplace and Jasper's need to make this appear to be an accident, the hospital was most certainly out of the question. Jasper chewed on his bottom lip as he formulated a plan.
The most dangerous place for a human, apart from in the presence of a vampire, is in their own home.
He shifted though his flawless memory to find the statistics then searched for another bit of information. Earlier, when Carlisle had handed him Amanda's chart Jasper had taken note of the listed home address. By his recollection she lived down on the end of Huckleberry Lane. That would be easy enough to find. Jasper nodded to himself as his smile broadened while his plan took shape.
Let Papa handle him at the hospital and kick his punk ass out. That jackass thinks he's fearless. I'll give him something to fear before I snuff his life out for good. Maybe I can't prolong your death, but I can make sure as hell that you see it coming. Just one demon taking out another and keeping the Universe in balance. You've got a load of karmic debt to pay, boy, and I'm going to be waiting to collect.
A distant sound of snapping branches and the calling out of his name brought Jasper out of his thoughts as his head whipped around to pin point the direction of the sounds. His family was looking for him. If they were to find him, he would not be able to complete his mission.
Knowing that his scent would be harder to track through the upper levels of the trees, Jasper took to the canopy as he leaped from tree to towering tree in a roundabout direction to confuse his would be rescuers. Only once he felt certain that his siblings would be left wandering in circles, did he strike off towards town to locate the Hayford house where he would lay in ambush for his prey.
Jasper walked up Huckleberry and as expected easily located his destination. Even had he not had the benefit of knowing the address, the man's stench left a trail so heavy that it was almost visual. He smelled of musky sweat, beer, tobacco, sawdust and sap. The entire area reeked of his offensive odor, but as Jasper drew near the house the scent grew nearly overpowering.
The solider slunk into the deep shadows as he stalked towards the house. Silent death slipped near the door of the little white clapboard, carefully listening for sounds of the living inside. He could hear the slow deep breathing of a human secure in the clutches of sleep. Inhaling deeply, he caught the light scent of jasmine and spice that was uniquely Sara Hayford. He continued to scan the house, but Sara appeared to be the only occupant.
Satisfied that he had beaten Franklin Hayford back to his home, Jasper climbed up onto the garage and settled in to wait.
"Mr. Hayford, I'm asking you nicely to leave. Now, either you can remove yourself from these premises or I can cuff you, toss you in the back of my squad car and you can spend the night behind bars. Choice is all yours, but you better decide fast because it's late and this is a very limited time offer."
Carlisle leaned against the door frame with his arms folded as he monitored the interaction between Chief Swan and Franklin Hayford. Though he was a peaceful man, he had to admit that he would not have minded seeing Charlie haul Amanda's father away.
"He said that I was banned for the day. It's after midnight. That makes this the next day and I'm here to take my daughter home." The large man bowed up at Charlie Swan doing his best to intimidate the police chief.
"That is incorrect, Mr. Hayford." Carlisle stated plainly. "I stated that you were banned for twenty four hours. Since I did not institute the ban at midnight, your twenty four hours are not yet up."
"That's bullshit!"
"Hey!" Charlie glared at the belligerent Hayford. "You take it down. There is no call for that sort of language, especially around a child; an injured child who should be asleep instead of being subjected to this garbage." When it appeared that the man was not going to continue with his outburst Charlie went on. "Now, Doctor Cullen says that your twenty four hours aren't up. You leave now or, one, I'll run you in and, two, I'll tack on another twenty four hours myself."
"You can't keep my daughter from me."
"I've got CPS on speed dial. One call from me and you'll be lucky if you see your daughter in a month. Got it? Good. Now go and have a good night and let this little girl get the rest she needs." Putting his hand against the man's shoulder, Charlie shoved him towards the door and out into the hallway. "I'm not big on repeating myself, Hayford. Get out of here. You can come back…" The Chief glanced at Carlisle. "What time did this ban start?"
"Around ten thirty this morning."
"You can come back at three pm. No earlier. If I hear of you causing any more disturbances, your butt is behind bars. It's up to you, Dude. Tomorrow afternoon or twenty four in a cell. I know what I would pick."
Cursing under his breath, Franklin stormed towards the door and disappeared into the night.
Carlisle rubbed his eyes then looked at the police chief with a grateful expression. "I'm sorry to have to drag you out here at this time of night to deal with something like this."
"It's alright, Doctor Cullen. Dumbasses don't exactly keep banker's hours." Charlie glanced over at the little girl watching quietly from her bed. "Oh. Um, yeah. I'm sorry about that. Don't repeat that sort of language. Okay?"
Amanda nodded.
Heaving a sigh, Carlisle walked over to the bed and gently lifted Amanda back up toward the top. Sitting her upright, he quickly arranged her pillows before laying her back against them. "Young lady, I want you to go to sleep. What have I told you?"
"I heal faster when I sleep."
Smiling, the doctor ruffled her hair. "Still the only person around here who listens to me. Not even my nurse listens as well as you do. Now try to relax. It's well past your bedtime."
"But, I don't feel tired." In spite of her words, Amanda yawned as she rubbed her eyes.
"Yes, I can see that. Well, little one, I want you to at least try to get some sleep for me. If you find that you're still having trouble sleeping, I can send in a nurse with a shot that is guaranteed to help make you drowsy."
"Oh, no, Doctor Cullen. I don't need that. I'm feeling drowsy already." Rolling over on her side, she snuggled into the pillows and closed her eyes.
Carlisle smiled as he picked her stuffed pony up off the floor and tucked in next to her. "Good night, little miss. I'll see you in the morning."
"With Jasper?" Amanda opened one eye to peer at Carlisle while she hugged her horse close.
He nodded. "With Jasper."
Flicking off the back light, Carlisle ushered Charlie out of the room and closed the door behind them.
As they walked down the hall towards the door, a lazy smile came to Charlie's face. "I can see why you have so many kids. You're good with them. Wish I had that magic touch."
Carlisle chuckled. "There is no magic in child rearing, but there is the need for a great deal of patience."
"Oh, as a little one, my Bells could try the patience of a saint."
"Surely your daughter is not so bad as that."
"Oh, she can be and her mother has not really set the best example. It's more like Bella is raising Renee instead of the other way around."
Carlisle smiled gently. "That can happen. They grow up very fast these days and certainly know more than we ever did at their age."
"You've got that straight."
As they walked out into the parking lot Carlisle shook Charlie's hand. "Thank you again for helping out with our little problem."
"Anytime, Doctor Cullen."
"Please. It's Carlisle."
Charlie nodded. "Carlisle."
The doctor leaned against his car as he watched the police unit pull out of the parking lot and speed off down the highway. "Good night, Charlie and good luck with your little girl."
If he didn't know that it was impossible, Carlisle would have sworn that he was completely physically and mentally exhausted. All he wanted now was to get home and finally find relaxation in his wife's arms.
Fumbling in his pocket for his keys, Carlisle suddenly remembered having heard the phone beep at him when he was talking to Charlie. In all of the confusion he had forgotten to check it until now. "Fine example you're setting for your children. How can you fuss at them for not answering your calls if you don't answer theirs?"
As he slid behind the steering wheel he withdrew his phone and keyed in the password for his voice mail. As soon as he heard his mate's voice, all pretense of exhaustion vanished. "Jasper? Oh no. Can it get any worse?"
Follow up voice mails gave him updates as to the areas that his children had covered in their search, but they hadn't yet been able to locate his obstinate boy. Unfortunately, that negated the idea that he was out hunting since surely they would have found him by now. Where are you, Jasper and what are you up to?
Closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose, Carlisle ran though other potential places his son might go. At least he had the good sense not to come to the hospital and confront Hayford so that's a blessing. Now if only…. Carlisle's eyes snapped open. Hayford. No, Jasper wouldn't do something like that. He couldn't.
Deciding that he could get there faster on foot, Carlisle jumped out of his car and ran in the direction of Huckleberry Lane all the while praying hard that he would get there before it was too late.
AN: Jazzy took me to a really dark place. Apparently, I am much more comfortable with Carlisle's beast than I am with Jasper's vampire self. For now, I'm going to blame the Redbull. Haven't had any in a week or so. Yesterday I was downing a big can, and... well you see what came of that. Of course it still might just be Jazz's feral self. Must have been a real force to reckon with back in Maria's Army. No wonder he never lost a fight. o.O
I know I was trying to cover a lot of ground in a small amount of space, but I hope it worked out alright.
Much love and many thanks to everyone following along with my various ramblings. I have several more ideas bouncing around in my head, but fear not, I am sticking with this one exclusively at least for a couple more chapters since I know where I need to get it before I'm happy. Of course that means the updates should come sooner...as long as the holidays don't kick my butt.
Reviews make me squee and keep me motivated.
A world of thanks to Splinter for her selfless courage in once again tackling a chapter that I send her at ... well it's just after 3 am now. *rolls eyes* ...and I wonder why I'm always tired at work. Pfft.